Renowned French soprano Natalie Dessay and violinist Geoff Nuttall, director of chamber music for Spoleto Festival USA, will be joined by chamber musicians Pedja Muzijevic (piano), Christopher Costanza (cello) and Caroline Blackwell (viola) for a special gala concert April 1 to celebrate the reopening of Charleston's historic Dock Street Theatre...

The renovations and additions to the Dock Street Theater, dating to 1809, includes seismic retrofitting in concrete and steel, complete restoration of the exterior which included masonry, stucco, and brownstone, site drainage improvements, complete renovation to the electrical, mechanical, theatrical lighting and sound systems, seating refurbishment, addition of three elevators, ADA-compliant improvements, interior renovations of the decorative wood and plaster trim ornaments and renovation of the floor, wall and ceiling finishes...

A close-up view of the Dock Street Theatre's new mahogany brackets, each of which weighs about 200 pounds. The original brackets were removed when the building was renovated in the 1930s to create the theater.

The renovation is looking very good. There were shovels and plaster and buckets everywhere, but you could see what the completed project is going to look like. In the words, Nigel Redden, Spoleto director, it will look like nothing happened.